We have been through this phase, we have faced it at one point or other, we as kids, we as parents have a relation with Son of Manjeet Singh. This film is a deliberate punch in the face of everyone involved in the education system. From the government, to the teachers to the parents too, everyone is somehow responsible for children not being able to pursue their dreams.

The story unfolds with a family of three, a father portrayed by Gurpreet Ghuggi and his two kids Jaiveer and Simran played respectively by Damanpreet Singh and Tania. It is the story of a middle class family where the father who’s in udhaar, but he never fails to play the role of a father, as well as a mother. The mother who’s dead in this story, is somehow present despite that. As was evident from the trailer, this middle-class son has the dream thousands of Indian kids have – the dream of becoming a cricketer. But, what is also the case with most of our Indian families, his father has a different dream, a safe career that his son must pursue. Whether or not Manjeet Singh will realise his folly and let his son be the pilot of his dreams or will his wings be cut down will be known on watching the film.

In terms of acting, Gurpreet Ghuggi makes us come out of our comfort zone of watching him in a comic role and accept him in the role of a father who has a whole lot of responsibilities on his shoulders. To depict a real character and the turmoil of his life, he used to miss his sleep, which is a proof of his honesty and dedication. Being the only parent, double the responsibilities and add to that the challenge of raising two teenage kids. Damanpreet and Tania raise the level of this film, by supporting the veteran acting skills of Ghuggi. A pressurised teenager, who does not want to hurt his father but is helpless because his dreams are different, Damanpreet plays the role well. Tania, on the other hand, also is well-suited in the role of a protective elder sister, who is always trying to cover up for the mistake of her younger brother.

The film is entirely Manjeet Singh and his son centric film. The neighbours, the school, the scooter, all are an addition to their life which in a way add to either his misery or come to his rescue. The background music is good and helps in bringing the desired effect to the scenes. In a song ‘Kuch tah tu keh mere yara’ sung by Kapil Sharma, he succeeds in bringing the pain and longing of a father’s heart and his earnest desire to give happiness to his son. A special consideration has been kept by director Vikram Grover to depict the minute details as the screeching sound of the gate, the sound of the fan. In short, the audio happens to be in complete sync with the actions. Also needs a mention is the portrayal of tiny human emotions, that are very individualistic. For example, Manjeet Singh happens to have stopped his wrist watch when his wife passed away. These and more such incidences make the hero a human. The protagonist has emotions, the protagonist is not a hero, and that is what Ghuggi so marvellously depicts.

The flaws in this film are minor but then ‘To err is human’, and even perfection is imperfect at times. The imperfection with this film happens at very few points. For instance, the much loved scooter of Ghuggi, the scooter which is a slow-starter is sold at a price that makes up for an LED TV. In another scene, a tragic event in Malkeet Rauni’s life goes away so abruptly, and his grief is overshadowed by the primary plot. Karamjit Anmol, Harby Sangha, and BN Sharma are seen in unusual roles and they justify their characters. Regarding Japji Khaira’s role, well, we believe Son of Manjeet Singh would not have been affected without her.

To suffice it all, the effort of trying to take Punjabi cinema to another level, to a level where subject and story surpass everything else, and also to take this cinema out of the realms of the usual slapstick comedy, those efforts seem to have seen success. Of all those movies which have brought to Pollywood some meaning and some class, Son of Manjeet Singh will always be the one.

We recommend everyone to watch Son of Manjeet Singh and once you have watched, you will come out of the screens with the message that if given support, kids can make their parents proud and the way a child is always knows by his parents’ name, there can also be a point when parents will be known by their child’s name.